jena 6

[Jdarg]

jdarg, we live in a school district where the African-American/Caucasian ratio is very close to 50/50. It's unusual in that our part of the city has some of the most expensive homes in the area but is bordered by one of the most economically depressed cities. A house one street over from me sold recently, and one of the first things the new residents did after moving in was hang Confederate flags in their front windows. The first day I drove by the house, I literally stopped the car in disbelief. My oldest son's best friend lives within sight of that house, and he is African-American. I am absolutely sickened that this boy has to literally see this every day. I never cease to be amazed by how alive and well bigotry is.

:shock: Wow. They sound super classy. Maybe you should take them some cookies and welcome them to the neighborhood. (Don't forget to put Ex-Lax in the cookies )

 

[Mango]

Symbolic or not, it is like a dog marking his tree, and he has to expect that there are bigger dogs in the neighborhood who are going to come by and pee higher on the tree.

Where's Kitty? Can we consider this the Gem of the Day?

 

[Miss Kitty]

Where's Kitty? Can we consider this the Gem of the Day?

...the Gem of the Day can be picked by anyone with good taste!

pea...remember the 60 Minutes expose on Belleville?

 

[TooFarTampa]

jdarg, we live in a school district where the African-American/Caucasian ratio is very close to 50/50. It's unusual in that our part of the city has some of the most expensive homes in the area but is bordered by one of the most economically depressed cities. A house one street over from me sold recently, and one of the first things the new residents did after moving in was hang Confederate flags in their front windows. The first day I drove by the house, I literally stopped the car in disbelief. My oldest son's best friend lives within sight of that house, and he is African-American. I am absolutely sickened that this boy has to literally see this every day. I never cease to be amazed by how alive and well bigotry is.

Someone in my neighborhood (which seems full of otherwise reasonable and nice people) has a confederate flag out front and a pineapple -- the universal symbol for "welcome" -- embossed on their front gate. :shock: I guess only certain people are welcome.

I listened to a wonderful speech this morning about fatherhood by Miami Herald columnist Leonard Pitts Jr. Even though he addressed racial demographics, his message was so universal I almost forgot he was black. Then during the Q&A session he started talking about what it's like to grow up as a black boy in America, and how when black parents teach their kids to drive, it is smart to give them a lesson in exactly how to act when pulled over by the cops. (It is safe to say most white parents would not think of this.) He described being black as "all the stuff you have to deal with growing up, and then there's this other stuff on top of it." I think for the first time, I really got it. There are enough people out there still prejudiced that being black (and I would say Hispanic too) means automatically "having to deal with other stuff." Things like this Jena 6 incident serve as a reminder of this.

Of course, if you are a young rich white good looking male you are also a potential victim of persecution (think Duke lacrosse players), because as Americans we love to tear people down. Judge judge judge, it's human nature, we all do it, but it stinks.

 

[peapod1980]

pea...remember the 60 Minutes expose on Belleville?

Yes, absolutely. A lousy way to get the proverbial 15 minutes.

Then during the Q&A session he started talking about what it's like to grow up as a black boy in America, and how when black parents teach their kids to drive, it is smart to give them a lesson in exactly how to act when pulled over by the cops. (It is safe to say most white parents would not think of this.) He described being black as "all the stuff you have to deal with growing up, and then there's this other stuff on top of it." I think for the first time, I really got it.

Oh, TFT, that is amazing that you said this. I have a good friend (Caucasian) who adopted an African-American boy. When the movie "Crash" came out, she saw it and then put together a group of friends (all Caucasian women) to go see it and go out afterwards to discuss. She used that very example--she said she couldn't raise her black son the same way she raised her white daughters because different rules would apply to him; for example, she would have to instruct him how to act if ever pulled over by a white cop. It was interesting, almost all the women were aghast at and offended by what she said; their feeling was that lessons like this would continue to perpetuate racism in America. She said, as a mother, she was merely teaching her son lessons that would keep him safe. She has a great sense of humor and said, "The fact of the matter is, a white person in this area could ride down Main St. shooting a rifle out his window and possibly get pulled over. A black man obeying all the traffic laws could drive down the same street and risk getting pulled over. That's reality." I would love to hear Pitts' speech, and I know she would, too.

 

[Smiling JOe]

:shock: Wow. They sound super classy. Maybe you should take them some cookies and welcome them to the neighborhood. (Don't forget to put Ex-Lax in the cookies )

Or better yet, suit them for lowering your property values.

 

[Smiling JOe]

Since the State Flags for FL, AL, MS, and up until recently, GA, all have variations of the Confederate Flag incorporated into them, I guess we cannot say much about some people hanging flags in their own homes. We hang variations of the same flag on our capital building, all while thinking that racism isn't alive and present in the good 'ole US of A. I will add that all of these variations, along with the Confederate Flag, stem from the Cross of Saint Andrew, who was the patron Saint of Scotland. The Cross is supposed to be the represent the freedom from tyranny. I find it interesting reading about how symbols change with time. The KKK quickly sided with Christianity to win people into their organization. Hitler stole the Swastika from the Hindus and totally changed the meaning for anyone knowing about Hitler. The KKK picked it up as well.

It is a crazy world out there.

 

[sara82]

al sharpton referred to jena as the "beginning of the 21st century civil rights movement". thoughts?

you can read about the rally here: http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/law/09/20/jena.six/index.html

and the color of change campaign here:
http://www.colorofchange.org/jena/main.html


glad to see this thread (?) is still alive and kicking....

 

[LightWorker]

al sharpton referred to jena as the "beginning of the 21st century civil rights movement". thoughts?

you can read about the rally here: http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/law/09/20/jena.six/index.html

and the color of change campaign here:
http://www.colorofchange.org/jena/main.html


glad to see this thread (?) is still alive and kicking....

I did the color of change campaign and will send this to all my friends. Thank you Sarafunn.

 

[Jdarg]

Sarafunn makes her Mama Kitty proud!!